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LIBRARY OF CONGRESS. 



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$%H' toprisW io- 



{ ^de^MS ., I 

t UNITED STATES OP AMERICA, t 



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CVLLIMGS 



CAR M E L , 

A Selection of Parables and Allegories originally 
wrought out from the Hebrew. 



BY DR. A. L. MAYER, 



Minister of the Congregation "House of Israel" and Principal of 
the Southern College, at Richmond, Va. 



y 



PROCEEDS OF PUBLICATION TO BE DEVOTED TO THE ERECIION OF A 

HOrSE OF WORSHIP FOR THE CONGREGATION 

"house OF ISRAEL." 



RICHMOND : 

B. W. GTLLIS' STEAM POWER PRESSES. 
1871. 



t>^{, 



go 



•'Entered according to Act of Congress, in the tear 1871, by 

DR. A. L. MAYEK, 
IN THE Office of the Librarian of Congress, at Washington." 



PREFACE 



The author presents this little volume of a work en- 
titled, "'Cullings from Carmel." being a selection of 
Parables and Allegories, most of them originally 
wrought out from the Hebrew, as the learned in that 
tongue will readily perceive. 

Many of them are taken from Midrash Kabbah and . 
others. Each one of the selections inculcates a moral 
or religious lesson, and presents scriptural truths in the 
most attractive garb to the heart and mind. 

Tn explanation of the title we have chosen for our 
little volume, we will state that '^Carmel." in the old 
Scriptures, signifies '*The Mount of -Flowers:'" and 
Solomon in his songs delighted to recount the glories 
of Carmel, its flowers, its fruits, and its delicious 
odors,* 

Our selections are gleanings from this Mount ; and 
therefore we think the title of this little volume emi- 
nently appropriate, as suggestive of its contents. 

Some of the pieces have already been issued by sev- 
eral authors, especially by M. Mendelssohn, Herder, 
but the classical reader will perceive they are written 
after the original, and in a new style. 



*("ant. 7, 6; Is. 29, 17—32, 15, & 16: Jerm. 48, 33—4, 2(5: II K. 10, 
23—4, 42, etc. 



PREFACE. 

During forty years experience in the field of instruc- 
tion, the author has found no better medium through 
which to attract and interest his pupils, than to give 
them, from time to time, a narration of poesy, tradi- 
tion or fables, and from extracting some healthful mo- 
ral thereby, prompting their minds to the perusal and 
study of the Scripture upon which the narration is 
founded, and thus contributing to the ennobling of both 
heart and mind. 

The intention of the author was to publish a larger 
collection, to relieve the embarrassed condition of his 
congregation, especially made so by the loss of their 
place of worship, and he has resolved to devote the 
fruits of this edition to that purpose, and sincerely 
hopes no one will refuse his generous aid. 

So I send this little volume forth, and make my ap- 
peal to all human hearts, and I am sure from it, we 
will soon see the erection of a house of worship and 
most probably a fund of aid for all in want. 

"The one does much, the other less, every one should 
do it in the name of the Lord" — Talmud Berackoth, 17. 

A. L. MAYER, 

Richmond, Va., Oct. 1871. 



CONTENTS. 



Never be Disheartened, - - - 7 

Which is the Greatest God? - - - 9 
The Seven Sons : a Parable of the Sabbath. - K) 

The Bond of the Human Race, - - 14 

The Death of Moses, - - - - 16 

The Angel of Death, - - - - 20 

The Generous Jewess, - - - - 22 

The Rewards of the Future World, - - 23 

The Emperor Trajan and the Rabbi, - - 25 

Truth, 27 

The Crown of Old Age, - - - 28 

The Wine- Vessel, - - - - 81 

The Child of Mercy, - - - • - 32 

All for the Best, .... 34 

When shall we Follow a Multitude? - - 36 

The Subjugation of a Great Sinner, - - 38 

The Early Dead, 39 

Death and Sleep, - - - - 40 

The Origin of Wine, - - - - 43 

Noah's Raven, - - - - 44 

The Three Friends, - - - - 46 

The Gold and Iron, - - -■ - 48 

The Judgment, or the Legal Sentence, - - oO 

The Youthful Solomon, - - - 53 

The Psalmist, - - - - - 55 

The Death of Adam, - - - - 57 

Smiling in Death, - - - - 60 



CONTEXTS, 

The Day before Death, - - - 61 

Solomon in his Old Age. - - - 60 

Rachael's Tomb, - - - - 67 

Noah's Dove, ----- 71 

Sammaei, ----- 78 

The Rabbi Meier, - - - - 76 

The Inn, ..... 79 

Aurora, - - - - - - SI 

David and Jonathan, - - - - 88 

The Conquerer of the World. - - 86 

The Stars, ..... 88 

The Trees of Paradise, - - - 90 

The Test of Faith. - - - - 98 

The Vine. - - - - - 95 

Dispute of the Mountains, - - - 98 

The Translation of xihron, - - - lOO 

The Wonder- Staff of the Prophet, - - 101 

Day and -Night, - - - - - 104 

The Childhood of Abraham, - - 106 

Ingratitude the Reward of the World, - 111 

To be Affrighted is to be Subdued, - - 119 

Good Works and Words, - - - 120 

Belongs the World to me alone? - - 123 



ERRATA. 



Page o4, line 15, "dedicatad" read "dedicated." 
" GG, " 1, "burning with fiovvers" read '•inflames/' 
" " " 15, " my" read "thy." 

*• 17, ''canst" read "can."'. 



NEVER BE DISHEARTENED. 

After Joseph had finished his interpre- 
tation of the dreams to the chief butler 
and baker of Pharaoh's household, he 
said unto the first, ^'But think on me 
when it shall be well with thee, and shew 
kindness, I pray thee, unto me; and make 
mention of me unto Pharaoh, and bring me 
out of this house; for, indeed, I was stolen 
awav out of the land of the Hebrews ; 
and here also have I done nothing that 
they should put me into the dungeon." 

Yet the chief butler did not remember 
of Joseph, but forgot him as soon as gone 
from his presence. 

And the Lord said unto Joseph, -^The 
chief butler hath forgotten thee, but I will 
not forget thee." 

Deliverance is ever nigh unto those 
who trust in the Lord ; and if we but do 
our duty, our greatest expectations even 



g CULLTNGS FROM CARMEL; 

will be excelled, and we shall be blest be- 
yond that w^e could have conceived. 

By faith Abraham and Jacob, in their 
old age, became the parents of a son who 
redeemed the Hebrews. By faith Joseph, 
who had suffered so many misfortunes in 
Egypt, became the head of Pharaoh's 
household. By faith Moses, who w\as ex- 
posed upon the water, in an ark of bul- 
rushes, became the leader of his People. 
By faith Ruth, the Moabite, became the 
progenitor of the King of Israel. By 
faith Jehojachin was delivered out of cap- 
tivity ; and by faith Hananiah, Michael, 
and Asariah w^ere saved out of the fire. 

After such manifestations as these, who 
can doubt the power and the goodness of 
the Lord, and that ultimately, through His 
divine wisdom, the nations shall be united 
in the service of the one and Most High ? 

^* For tlien will I turn to the people a pure language, 
that they may call upon the name of the Lord, to serve 
Him with one consent." — IZephaniah, III, 9th verse. 



PARABLES AND ALLEGORIES. 9 

WHICH IS THE GREATEST 
GOD? 

A Pagan said unto a Rabbi. ^^ My God 
is greater than thy God !'' The Rabbi 
questioned "' Why ?" '^ Yes/' said the Pa- 
gan, ''in the time when your God revealed 
Himself unto Moses in the burning thorn 
bush, he concealed only his face; but in 
the moment when he saw the Serpent^ 
which is my goddess, he fled before her. 
Therefore, you see mv God is fearful, anrl 
more to be feared than your God." 

And the Rabbi, to conclude, answered, 
" When God revealed himself in the thorn 
bush, Moses had no place whereunto he 
could flee ! Where could he flee ? Into 
the heavens ? into the sea ? or the earth ? 
For it is written of our God, 'Do I not 
fill heaven and earth?' (Jerem., 23, 24.) 
But the Serpent, which is thy goddess, 
filleth only her own space, and if a man 



10 CLTLLINGS FROM CARMEL ; 

flee before her two or three paces, he may 
save himself. Therefore Moses fled be- 
fore the Serpent." 



THE SEVEN SONS: 

A Parable of the Sabbath. 

A certain father, a wise and kind man, 
had seven sons. Six of them were lusty 
and strong, ot sinewy frame, and capable 
of enduring every hardship and artizan 
employment ; but the seventh and young- 
est brother was of feeble constitution, and 
slight frame, little fitted for labor. But 
the father loved the younger son more 
than all the other six, for he was an ex- 
cellent, goodly child, full of generous im- 
pulses ; and joy of heart, and serenity of 
countenance were his companions. 

So the father called his six stalwart 
sons, and said unto them, "My sons, it is 



PARABLES AND ALLEGORIES. H 

my holy will that your youngest brother 
be exempted from labor with his hands ; 
that he be dedicated to spiritual occupa- 
tions ; that you shall have a care for his 
support, while he by his great wisdom and 
good council shall bring joy to our house. 

The ordination of the tender father was 
faithfully observed for many years. The 
six lusty brothers wrought for and sup- 
ported the seventh, and he was their wise 
counsellor, and cheered his brothers in the 
execution of all good works. 

But at length there came a wicked and 
perverse man into this happy family, ta 
disturb its harmony. 

And when he had seen the rule that 
governed the household, how the six bro- 
thers labored, while the seventh and 
youngest rested, he began to incite 
the six to disobedience of their father's 
command. '' Fools that ye are !" said the 
wicked one, ''Why do ye feed this idler? 



12 CULLINGS FROM CARMEL; 

Command him that he put aside his fine 
garments and go to work, else in his idle 
hours, he will occupy himself in \ .MP.ity." 

The brothers who permitted them- 
selves to be misled, went to their young- 
est brother and said: '^'Brother, thou 
shalt be made to labor ; for thou art no 
better than we are." 

And the youngest brother asked^ 
^'Have you forgotten the injunction of 
our father? " 

But they answered him, '^It matters 
not unto us : from this day henceforth, 
thou shalt help us in the field, in the shop 
and in the house, and earn the bread 
that thou eatest." 

The younger thus bidden, obeyed, else 
he had been compelled, and labored 
among the six. 

But after a time a great change came 
o'er him, and his brothers were affected 
in their souls because of him. 



PARABLES AXD ALLEGORIES. 13 

His comliness and good sense depart- 
ed, his serenity and gladness of counte- 
nance disappeared^ and he ceased to be 
the joy and blessing of the household. 

Then his six brothers came to him and 
asked, ^^0 brother, why hast thou ceased 
to rejoice our hearts as of yore, through 
the honey of thy good words? And 
why dost thou not refresh us by thy 
wise course ?" 

And the seventh replied with sorrow^ 

^^You yourselves are guilty, for you 
have transgressed the ordinance of our 
common father, and compelled me to la- 
bor when it was my mission to entertain, 
refresh, and counsel. Therefore, all that 
was good and noble hath gone out of me, 
and henceforth ye shall find in me neither 
comfort nor consolation, nor yet a bless- 
ing in my words or works." 

And when the six brothers heard the 
words of the seventh they knew they had 



14 CULLINGS FROM CARMEL; 

sinned^ and broken the commandment of 
their father. Hear the explanation of 
this parable : 

The seven sons are the seven days of 
the week. The six are the secular wor- 
king days, the seventh is the Sabbath of 
the Lord, in which it is ordained by the 
Father that no man shall labor. 



THE BOND OF THE HUMAN 
RACE. 

The transgressions of parents are some- 
times punished by the Lord through their 
children, and divine indignation at the 
sins of the father is visited upon the sons 
and grandsons. 

When the Lord, amid thunder and 
lightnings, revealed his law to the people 
from Mount Sinai, he said, ^^Give me a 
bond that you keep it." Then the people 



PARABLES AND ALLEGORIES. Iq 

presented their fathers^ and patriarchs^ 
saying. '^These shall be our bond that 
we observe thy laws." 

But the Lord God of Sinai took not 
this bond, for said the Lord of Hosts, 
^*^They themselves have been sinners like 
unto you. Therefore bring me your sons 
and grandsons, and they shall be a bond." 

And the new-born, the sucklings, and 
the children in the arms of their mothers, 
all raised their voices and undertook the 
obligation, and became a bond between 
the Lord and his chosen people. 

And the Lord said, ^^I will visit the 
sins of the fathers unto the children of 
the third and fourth generation, but I 
will bless unto the thousandth genera- 
ration." 

And when Moses heard this proclama- 
tion, he adoring bowed himself, and when. 
God passed before him, he proclaimed 
unto the people of Israel, ''The Lord 



Ig CULLINGS FROM CARMEL : 

Grodj merciful and gracious, forgiveth in- 
iquity, transgression and sin ; and if He 
punisheth the transgression of the parents 
unto the third and fourth generation, so 
also hath He promised to bless unto the 
thousandth generation." 

Thus did the Lord covenant with His 
people, who gave him a bond. 



THE DEATH OF MOSES. 

When it w^as appointed that Moses, the 
confidant of the Lord, should die, and 
the hour drew nigh, the Lord assembled 
his angels about him, and said : ^^The 
time has come for me to call for the soul 
of my servant, Moses. Who will be my 
messenger ?" 

And the noblest and most exalted an- 
gels, Michael, Raphael, Gabriel and all 
who were before the throne of the Lord, 
prayed and said : ^'We are his, and he 



PARABLES AND ALLEGORIES. I7 

was our teacher. Let us not demand the 
soul of this upright man at this time." 

But Sammael, the fallen angel, stepped 
forward and said : ^''Here am I, send 
me as your messenger to Moses." 

Clothed with authority and prompted 
by anger and cruelty , Sammael descended^ 
the flaming sword in his hand. But wheir 
he came nigher, and saw the face of 
Moses, he was abashed and put to shame. 
For he saw that the fire of his eye was 
not quenched, nor had his strength and 
vigor decayed in the least. The words 
of his last song he wrote with his face 
beaming with brightness and his soul 
possessed by a heavenly tranquility. 

Sammael, sent to summon his soul, was 
terrified when he saw Moses. The sword 
sank down in his grasp, and he hastened 
away. "1 cannot bring the soul of this 
man," said he to Jehovah, ^'^for I have 
not found any impurity in him." 



18 CULLINGS FROM CARMEL; 

And the Lord himself descended^ to 
receive the soul of his servant, Moses, 
and his true servants Michael, Raphael, 
Grabriel and all the other angels descended 
with him. 

And they prepared for Moses his death- 
bed, and stood around about^ at his head 
and at his feet, and a voice spoke, '^•Be 
not afraid; I myself Avill bring thee." 

Therefore, Moses prepared himself for 
his death, and sanctified himself, and the 
Lord called his soul. •' Soul, I had fixed 
for thee to dwell one hundred and twenty 
years in the tabernacle of my servant, 
Moses. His end hath come; therefore, 
O! soul, go ye out, and delay not." 

And the soul of Moses answered — 

" Lord God of the Universe, I know 
that Thou art the Lord of all souls, and 
in Thy hands are the destinies of the liv- 
ing and the dead. Out of Thy hand I 
received the fiery law, and saw Thee in 



PARABLES AND ALLEGORIES. 19 

the flames, and ascended and walked 
the heavenly way. Through Thy might 
I entered the palace of the King and 
took the crown from off' his head, and 
did many wonders. Through Thy mercy, 
I brought out Thy people from Egypt and 
the land of bondage. I divided the waves 
of the sea, and changed bitter water into 
sweet, and revealed to mankind the won- 
ders of Thy power. All my life have I 
dwelt in the presence of Thy fiery throne, 
and my habitation has been in the cloud, 
talking with face to face, as one friend 
unto another. 

'' And now, Lord, it is enough ; take 
me to Thyself, I come to Thee," 

And God was merciful unto His ser- 
vant Moses ; and He kissed him, and with 
that kiss He took his soul. 

So Moses died and was buried ; but 
unto this day no one knows the place 
where his grave was made. 



20 CULLINGS FROM CARMEL ; 

THE ANGEL OF DEATH. 

Terrible indeed must appear to the 
dying the Angel of Death ! the King 
of Terrors ! From his flaming sword 
flows bitter drops of blood and tears ; his 
sight is terriblOj and his form dreadful to 
look upon. Is there a power that can 
rescue us from his dominion ? Can none 
behold the Paradise before meeting face 
to face with the Angel of Death? Yes^ 
there is a power more potent than Death 
itself. He who has executed good deeds 
of love and mercy, who is blessed of God 
and honored of man^ he will not see 
Death. The glory of Paradise he ever 
hath in view ; his good deeds and works 
ever refresh his hearty and diffuse the calm 
of a holy peace and joy through his soul. 

Elieser, Abraham's true friend^ was so 
blest of his Master that it was promised 
him that he should neither see or taste of 



PARABLES AND ALLEGORIES. 21 

death, because of the joy he had prepared 
for him. And Sarah, when she brought 
the tidings to Jacob, ^'ray Son still liv- 
eth/' he answered^ ^^ The mouth that 
saith this to me shall be refreshed, for it 
is in the hour of death." 

And when Pharaoh's dausfhter lav 
nisrh unto deaflL for nobodv could sav 
what reward she received for bringing up 
Moses, the image of Moses appeared un- 
to her, and before that sight the image of 
Death disappeared from view. 

Gently, like a thread pulled out of 
milk, separates the soul of the good man 
from his body, for the soul remembers its 
tabernacle, and all the good wrought 
therein, but the soul of the wicked man 
struggles with Death, and goes out from 
his body like thorns plucked out of wool. 



22 CULLINGS FROM CARMEL ; 

THE GENEROUS JEWESS. 

Martha was the mother of a deceased 
Jew, named Ahron, who dwelt at Cracow, 
and gave money for pawns. One day a 
poor woman brought to Martha a prayer 
book, and begged of her a little money 
upon it. 

Martha considered for awhile, and then 
asked the woman why her necessities 
compelled her to bring to her a prayer 
book, to put in pawn. 

^^It is the only thing of value I pos- 
sess,'' answered the woman ; ^^ and my 
children have had nothing to eat since 
yesterday." 

'^ How much do you want for this 
book ?" asked the Jewess. 

'' If I get two Poland gilderens, it 
will be enough to satisfy me until my 
husband returns from Germany, whither 
he has gone to sell his linen." 



PARABLES AND ALLEGORIES. 23 

" Here are the two gilderens," answer- 
ed the kind-hearted Jew^ess, '^•'and here, 
also, is thy prayer book. I would not 
commit so great a sin as to take from thee 
the source of thy prayer to God. You 
are honest, and I am well assured you 
will render back to me, without pledge, 
the value of my money." 

And the poor w^oman departed offering 
praises to God. 



THE REWARDS OF THE FU- 
TURE WORLD. 

Judge not with feeble sense, the great 
disposer of events, for thou mayest not 
see the end of each. God has not re- 
vealed to man the degree of measure of 
reward that shall attend the works of the 
rigliteous. 

A king W'ished to plant a garden, and 



24 CULLINGS FROM CARMEL; 

for this purpose he itivited the workmen 
and left each to labor as he saw best, 
nor asked he of them w^hal each had 
planted until evening was come. Then 
the King discovered that one had planted 
the fig tree, another the oil tree, another 
the cypress, and yet another the palm 
tree, a very beautiful variety indeed. 

And the King, well pleased, gave to 
each one that planted, the reward due 
for his work. Now^ had the workmen 
who planted known w^hat particular va- 
riety of tree w^ould have brought the 
greatest reward, all would have planted 
that^ and the garden would not have been 
filled with a variety. 

A wise man was asked why God had 
so blessed him in his life. 

^^ Because said he, I always perform the 
smallest duty with as much cheerfulness 
and alacrity as I do the greatest duty; 
therefore it is the Lord has blessed me." 



PARABLES AND ALLEGORIES. 25 

THE EMPEROR TRAJAN AND 
THE RABBI. 

The great Emperor, Trajan, and the 
distinguished Rabbi, Josuah, disputed to- 
gether. 

•^ You assert/' said the Emperor, ^^that 
God is omnipresent, and that he dwells in 
the midst of men. I would like to see 
him," insisted the presumptuous fool ! 

The Rabbi answered, '^God is really 
omnipresent, but he is invisible; the eye 
of mortal cannot look upon nor bear the 
sight of his glory." 

The Emperor insisted that God should 
be shown him, that he might look upon 
Him in person. The Rabbi consented, 
but said he ^^At first consent to look upon 
the face of one of the heavenly embas- 
sador's Monarchs." 

Thereupon the Rabbi led Trajan to a 
window, and begged him to look upon 



26 CULLINGS FROM CARMEL : . 

the sun, which stood at mid-heaven, blaz- 
ing at high noon. 

And Trajan, when he saw the God of 
Day, banded his eyes with his hands and 

turned awav his head. 

»/ 

"1 cannot bear it," exclaimed the Em- 
peror Trajan ; ^^the exceeding brightness 
of his countenance dazzles me. The 
splendors of the Sun overcome me." 

^•'Thou cans't not bear to look upon the 
refulgence of one of God's creatures ! and 
yet thou would'st gaze upon the Creator 
himself! Oh, presumptuous fool! knowest 
thou not that thou would'st be annihi- 
lated !" 

So spoke the Rabbi, and the Emperor 
veiled his face. 



PARABLES AND ALLEGORIES. 27 



TRUTH. 

By the truth of men, we recognize 
the truth of God. 

PinchaSj, the son of Jair, a poor but hon- 
est and upright man. lived in a city of the 
South. Two men came to him on one 
occasion, and gave unto his custody a lot 
of grain to be kept until it was wanted for 
the market. But it did happen that the 
strange man went away, leaving the 
grain still in the keeping of Pinchas. 

Now what did the honest man do ? — 
Every year he sewed the grain, saw it 
ripen, and gathered it into his barn^ 
where it was kept subject to the demand 
of the unknown and absent owners. 

After seven years the same two men 
came again and asked for their grain. 

And Pinchas, very happy indeed recog- 
nized them and said, -^Come and take the 



28 CULLINCxS FPOM CARMEL - 

treasures which the Lord blessed to you; 
see, here is yours." 

Simeon^ son of Shetach^ bought an ass 
from an Ismaelite. His son discovered 
on the neck of the ass a precious stone, 
and said unto his father, '^ Father, the 
blessings of the Lord make you rich." 

''' Not so, my son," answered Simeon; 
^^ I bought the ass, but not the precious 
stone." And he forthwith returned the 
latter to the Ismaelite. 



THE CROWN OF OLD AGE. 

Whom the Creator honors, why should 
men nol honor? Upon the head of the 
intelligent and virtuous, gray hairs are a 
crown of beautiful device. 

Once upon a time, three aged men met 
together to celebrate their birthday; and 



PARABLES AND ALLEGORIES. 29 

in the progress of their festivities, they 
told to their children the secret of their 
attainment to the age beyond three score 
and ten. 

The first, a Teacher and Priest, said : 

^^It never troubled me whether I taught 
in my place or out of it, so I did my Mas- 
ter's work. Never did I transgress wil- 
fully; never lifted my hands save in kind- 
ness over the heads of my pupils ; never 
opened them save to invoke the blessing ; 
and in all I did I sought to praise the 
Lord. Therefore am I cheerful in my 
exceeding old age." 

The second, a merchant, said, ^^ I nev- 
er sought to enrich myself at the expense 
or to the injury of my fellow men; never 
pressed my end with the cause of another 
resting over me, and as I have been bless- 
ed so have I given willingly of my for- 
tune to the poor. 

" Therefore hath God blessed me, and 



30 CULLINGS FROM CARMEL ; 

added many pleasant years to my life." 

The third; a Judge said: '^1 never 
took bribes^ nor accepted presents^; never 
have I stood upon my own mind, unmind- 
ful of the law, in the most important cau- 
ses. I looked to vanquish myself, mind- 
ful of He who is higher than I, and judg- 
ing according to the deeds done in the 
body. 

" Therefore hath the Lord blessed me 
to an exceeding good old age." 

Then assembled all the children and 
grandchildren of these venerable old men, 
and kissed their hands and their cheeks, 
and adorned them with flowers. 

And the three Patriarchs blessed them, 
and said: 

^'May your children be to you what 
you are to us, — Upon your gray hairs a 
flourishing crown of roses." 

A temperate old age is a crown to the 
hoary head, but it is to be enjoyed only 



PARABLES AND ALLEGORIES. 3] 

upon the path of Prudence, Justice and 
Wisdom. 



THE WINE VESSEL. 

The daughter of an Emperor, once 
said unto a wise man, ^'Thou possessest 
great skillfulness, and yet art so ugly. 
How came it that so great wisdom is con- 
tained in so mean and unworthy a vessel?" 

•^Tell me/' answered the philosopher, 
"in what kind of vessel do you keep your 
wine?" 

■'In earthen," answered the maiden. 

^'And your father so rich !" queried 
the philosopher, in feigned astonishment. 
"Tell him to decant the wine into casks 
of silver." 

vShe did so, and the wine was changed 
into vinegar. 

^'Wh}^ have you persuaded my daugh- 



32 CULLINGS FPvOM CARMEL ; 

ter to such foolishness?" said the vexed 
Emperor^ when he encountered the phi- 
losopher. The philosopher explained^ and 
proceeded to show that it was done to teach 
his daughter a lesson, that wisdom and 
beauty are seldom united in one person. 
^^ Ah." replied the Emperor, ^^ there are 
men who are both learned and sage. If 
they were less handsome and more home- 
ly, probably they would be more learned 
and prudent still. A handsome man is 
seldom humble; he thinks only of him- 
self, and forgets his learning, his duty to 
God and mankind." 



THE CHILD OF MERCY. 

When the Lord, the Almighty, would 
create man. He assembled the Angels 
to take counsel with them. The Angel 
of Justice said, ^^Do not create him; he 



PARABLES AND ALLEGORIES. 33 

will be unjust against his brethren, and 
hard and cruel against the infirm." 

The Angel of Peace said, ^^Do not 
create him, he will dung the earth with 
the blood of man; the first born of hm 
generation will murder his brother." 

The Angel of Truth said, ^'Thy Sanc- 
tuary will be profane with falsehood if 
thou impress thy image upon his face." 

Thus spoke they when the Angel of 
Mercy, the youngest and most beloved 
child of the Eternal Father, stepped to 
the throne and embraced his knees. 

^^Create him, Father," said Mercy, ^^af- 
ter Thine own image; a favorite of thy 
kindness. If all thy servants abandon him 
I will not, but stand by him supporting 
his weakness, leading his footsteps, and 
converting his errors into good. I will 
make sympathy in his heart for the 
feeble, and chasten his passion into 

virtues. If he errs from peace and truth; 

c 



34 CULLINGS FROM CARMEL; 

if he offend justice and equity, I shall 
lead him back from the consequences of 
his errors and correct and discipline him 
in his love." 

The Father thereupon created man^ a 
fallible, feeble creature, but even in his 
mistakes a pupil of his Maker s goodness; 
a son of mercy, a son of love, never aban- 
doned of God, and ever the subject of His 
correction. 

Eemember thee always, of thy source, 
0! man; if thou art hard and inequitable. 
By all the qufdities of God, Mercy has 
elected thee to the Life, and living. 

Shegiveth thee mercy and love from 
thy mother's breast. 



ALL FOR THE BEST. 

Man should cultivate the habit of con- 
sideration. Whatever God sends us is 



PARABLES AND ALLEGORIES. 35 

good, though its present shape appear 
evil. 

A pious and wise man, on a journey, 
came before a great city. The gates 
thereof were closed and locked and no- 
body would open unto him. So^ hungry 
and thirsty, he was compelled to remain 
under the canopy of the free heaven all 
night, sleeping under the walls. 

Before committing himself to sleep, 
the good man spoke, ^^What God sends 
is good," and so he layed himself down. 

At his side stood his ass, and upon 
him a burning lamp, that lit up the dark- 
ness around about. 

But a storm that arose extinguished 
his lamp, and a lion aroused from his lair, 
fell upon and devoured his ass. The 
good man awoke, and found himself in 
darkness and sore straits. 

But he only said, ^^What God sends 
is good," and waited until the morning. 



36 CULLINGS FROM CARMEL; 

When he came to the gates again^ he 
found them open, the city destroyed^ 
ransacked, robbed and plundered. A 
band of robbers had surprised it in the 
night, and made prisoners of, or killed all 
the inhabitants. 

The good man had been saved! 

^^Said I not," exclaimed he, '^^hat all 
that God sends us is good ?" 

But in most instances of God's dealings 
with us, we see only in the morning why 
He refused us some coveted thing in the 
evening. 



WHEN SHALL WE FOLLOW 
A MULTITUDE? 

A Gentile once said unto a Rabbi : 
"In your law it is written that you shall 
follow the multitude, and so are you com- 
manded. Now we, the Gentiles exceed you 
greatly in numbers, why do you not there- 



PARABLES AND ALLEGORIES. 37 

fore join with us in our form of wor- 
ship ? 

The Rabbi asked : •" Have you chil- 
dren ?" 

xlnd the Gentile answ^ered, *•! confess 
that I have my troubles." Whereupon 
the Rabbi enquired of the nature of 
those troubles. 

Said the Gentile, -'Many children I 
have^ and when they are at the table one 
prays to this God, another to that God, 
and it is often they do not get up until 
they have braised each othei-'s heuis." 

Rabbi: ^^And do you compare you 
with them?" Gentile: ''No." 

Rabbi: '^therefore^ before you compare 
us with thyself, go and make uniform the 
religionamong thy quarrelsome children." 



38 CULLINGS FROM CARMEL ; 

THE SUBJUGATION OF A 
GREAT SINNER. 

There was in the camp of Israel a cer- 
tain man who was known by everybody 
as a great sinner and mocker of good 
men. Now it did happen that one day^ 
the High Priest^ Ahron, walked through 
the camp. The man who was this no- 
torious sinner^ met the High Priest com- 
ing in another direction, and he would 
have gotten out of his way, but could 
not. At meeting, the Priest saluted the 
man in the most cordial and friendly 
manner, and thereat the sinner was great- 
ly astonished. The incident caused him 
to reflect, and reflecting, he said: 

''Everybody knows that I am a great 
sinner, but the High Priest greeted me 
in a very friendly manner. Possibly I 
am not so wicked as the world makes me 
out. Consequently, I will endeavor to 



PARABLES AND ALLEGORIES. 39 

become good and righteous like the High 
Priest." And the man kept his resolu- 
tion and became well and favorably known 
for his good deeds, as he had been noto- 
riously known before for his evil deeds. 



THE EARLY DEAD. 

Early one dewy morning, a beauti- 
ful girl Avent forth into the garden to 
gather roses wherewith to weave a gar- 
land. And the child found the roses yet 
in the bud, closed or half open. 

And the girl said, '^ Roses I will not 
pluck you yet; but the sun and the dew 
shall first open your petals, when you 
will undoubtedly smell nicer, and your 
fragrance be more grateful." 

At noon the girl came again^ and found 
to her great distress, that the nicest roses 
had put forth, and been eaten by the 



40 CULLINGS FROM CxiRMEL; 

worms^ or wilted by the rays of the sun, 
paled and decayed. The girl lamented 
her foolishness that she had not gathered 
in the morning; and the following day 
she was among the flowers by time, and 
gathered for her garland. 

The Almighty F:i(her, who loveth his 
own, calls his children early from this 
life, before they are contaminated with 
the wicked things of this world, and 
touched by the worm of sin. 

The Paradise of children is in the 
highest degree one of holy surroundings 
and innocent joy. The most justly pious 
among us cannot attain to the Paradise 
of the children, for his soul hath been 
touched by the worm of corruption. 



DEATH AND SLEEP. 

Death and Sleep embraced each other, 
and like twin Angels they journeyed on 



PARABLES AND ALLEGORIES. 41 

together through the earth. When the 
evening had fallen they stopped on a 
hill not far removed from the habita- 
tions of man. A melancholy silence 
reigned around, and the evening murmur 
of the distant village was hushed. 

Calmly and silently, typical of their 
mission, the two geniuses of man's bene- 
faction, poised their wings and the gloomy 
nio'ht descended. 

When the Angel of Sleep arose and 
strewd abroad the visible seeds of sleep ; 
and the evening breeze took them up and 
carried them into the peaceful huts. 

Soon the sweet Sleep seized upon the 
inhabitants of the land, from the aged and 
infirm to the child in the cra.dle, and all 
was repose. 

The sick forget their pain; the af- 
flicted their sorrows, and the poor their 
necessities. The eyes of all mankind 



42 CULLINGS FROM CARMEL ; 

shut themselves in peaceful slumbers. 

After the Angel of Sleep had fulfilled 
his functions, he flew back, and took his 
seat beside his brother Angel of Death 
on the hill, whose countenance was very 
severe. Exclaimed the Angel of Sleep, 
as he surveyed his handiwork: 

'^Oh^ how sweet to do good, as though 
by stealth! Soon as Aurora appears men 
will bless me as their friend and benefac- 
tor. How happy are we the invisible 
messengers of the good Spirit; how beau- 
tiful is our avocation !" 

So spake the mild Angel of Sleep; but 
the Angel of Death regarded him with 
melancholy, and a tear, such as the im- 
mortal shed, appeared in his grand black 
eye. 

''Ah," spake the Angel of Death, ''that 
I could, like thee, my brother, rejoice my- 
self in the possession of the gratitude of 
men. But I, the earth calls me her ene- 



PARABLES AND ALLEGORIES. 4 



o 



my, and considers me the destroyer of 
her joys." 

^'Oh my brother/' replied the Angel of 
Sleep, " will not the good man, after 
his last awakening, see in thee a benefac- 
tor and a friend, and will he not bless 
thee also with gratitude? Are we not 
brothers, sent upon our missions by the 
same father?" 

And the eye of the Angel of Death re- 
joiced at this, and the brothers of Sleep 
and Death embraced each other most ten- 
derly. 



THE ORIGIN OF WINE. 

It is an accepted tradition that Noah 
planted the first vineyard, and brewed 
the first wine. And it is said that the 
first vine stem he watered with the blood 



44 CULLINGS FROM CARMEL; 

of three different kinds of animals; with 
the blood of a lamb^ with the blood of a 
lion^ and with the blood of a sow. 

Thus may be traced the three stages 
which characterize men who drink wine. 

He who drinks for his health and to 
sufficiency only, will be gay as a lamb, 
gentle withal; he who drinks over much 
will become violent as a lion, while he 
who drinks beyond measure and without 
consideration, will become a sot, aad wal- 
low in the gutter like the swine. 

Behold, how truthful is the illustration 
in the history of man. 



NOAH^S RAVEN. 

Noah was uneasy in his ark, and waited 
until the waters of the flood should sub- 
side. Scarcely the points of the moun- 
tain tops were to be seen, when he called 



PARABLES AND ALLEGORIES. 45 

all the feathered inmates of the ark 
about him. 

^^'Who amongst you/' said Noah, '^•will 
be the messenger to go forth and see if 
we are yet to be saved?" 

Then with great noise of wmgs^ came 
the Raven. He smelt of his favorite 
dish in the dead men and animals that 
strewed the world below. Soon as the 
window was open^ the Raven flew away, 
but he did not return. 

The ungrateful bird forgot his saviour 
and the business he flew upon. He was 
only mindful of his carcase. 

But the revenge of Noah did not fail. 
The air was full of poisoned exhales, 
dreadful mists and death damps, ascend- 
ing from the doomed bodies of men and 
animals that covered all the world below. 
And they covered the face of the Raven, 
and blackened his plumage. 

As a punishment for his forgetfulness^ 



46 CULLINGSFROM CARMELj 

his memory and his eyes were darkened. 
He doth not rcognize his young, and he 
has not the satisfaction of a father in 
their being. 

Affrightened at their ugliness^ he flew 
away and quitted them. 

The ungrateful beget an ungrateful 
generation; and he who neglects his duty 
forfeits the esteem and thanks of his 
children. 

Thus the raven became an outcast bird^ 
hunted and hated by all mankind. 



THE THREE FRIENDS. 

Do not trust a friend until you have ex- 
amined and proved him. At the banquet 
there are more friends to be found than 
at the door of the jail. 

A certain man had three friends. 

Two of them he loved the most. To 



PARABLES AND ALLEGORIES. 47 

the third he was indifferent; albeit this 
friend was the truest to him. 

Once this man was summoned to ap- 
pear before the court upon a charge of 
which he was innocent, although it was 
very grave. 

'•Who amongst you/' said this man to 
his friends, ^'will go with me and give 
witness for me in my behalf? For I am 
accused very seriously, and the King is 
exceeding angry." 

The first and most ardent of his friends 
excused himself immediately. It would 
not be possible for him to go with him 
into court on account of business. 

The second, likewise made excuses, 
but accompanied him to the door of the 
Court of Justice, when he turned away 
and went homeward, afraid of the anger 
of the Judge. 

But the third friend, who was the least 
loved, when he was summoned, came and 



48 CULLINGS FROM CARMEL; 

went ill; and pleaded the cause of his 
friend with such effect and testimony that 
the Judge released him, and they both 
went on their way rejoicing greatly. 

In this world man hath three friends. 

The few who are relatives^ surround 
his couch at the hour of death; the many 
of his would-be friends^ accompany him 
to the door of the grave^, then turn away 
and go back to their homes. The third/ 
whom he neglects the most in life, are 
his human works and deeds. These on- 
ly accompany him to the throne of the 
Judge, and make intercession for himy 
that the Lord may judge, and exercise 
pity and mercy. 



THE GOLD AND IRON. 

Very bitter are the wounds inflicted by 
a friend or kinsman; but the bloAvs of a 



PARABLES AND ALLEGORIES. 49 

stranger are not so much regarded^ as the 
wound less deeply^ which introduces the 
fable of the Gold and the Iron. 

^'Why/' said the gold ingot to the bar 
of iron^ ^^Why do you cry out with such 
noise when you are beaten by the sledge 
hammer upon the anvil? Do you not see 
how quietly I take the blows of the gold- 
beater?" 

^^Yes," replied the iron, " That is all 
very well in you, who are beaten by a 
stranger — a wooden mallet; but I^ you 
see, am beaten by my own brother — an 
iron sledo:e hammer. It is that causes 
me great pain, sorrow and anger ; there- 
fore do I cry out and complain." 

All of which was very true; and there- 
after the gold ingot felt more sympathy 
for the iron bar when it was beaten by 
its own brother, the iron sledge, and 
complained. 



50 CULLINGS FROxM CARMEL; 

THE JUDGMENT 

Or, The Legal Sentence. 

Alexander the Great^ of Grreece^ in one 
of his campaigns, invaded a province in 
Africa, which was exceedingly rich in 
gold. And the inhabitants, thinking to 
please the Conqueror of the World, 
brought him plates filled with golden ap- 
ples, and other fruits, also of gold. 

Alexander asked the fruit-bearers : 
^'Do you eat such fruits in your country? 
I have not come to see your precious 
gold and gems, but to learn of your cus- 
toms and manners." 

And they conducted Alexander to the 
market-place, where their King sat in 
judgment. 

Just then came a citizen and appealed 
to the King. " Oh King, I bought of 
this man a sack full of chaff; and in the 
midst of the chaff I have found a con- 



PARABLES AND ALLEGORIES. 5] 

siderable treasure. The chaff that I 
bought, is mine, but not the gold, which 
I did not buy. But this man will not 
take it back. Therefore, persuade him, 
King, that he may take what belongs 
to him." 

And the man complained against, also 
a citizen, replied, '' you are afraid to 
keep this thing lest you be called unjust, 
but I should not be afraid to take such 
from thee. I have sold thee the sack 
and all that it contained. Keep that 
which is yours. King, persuade him."^ 

Of the first, the King asked. ^' Have 
you a son T And he was answered, 
yes. 

Of the second he asked. "^Have you 
a daughter T And he was likewise an- 
swered, yes. 

" Then," continued the Kingly Judge, 
'^ bestow your children in marriage, and 
give this treasure found in the sack, 



52 CULLINGS FROM CARMEL 



as a dowry unto them both. This is my 
decision." 

Alexander, who was a witness to all 
that was done, was astonished at this 
sentence. 

^^Have I judged falsely, asked the 
African King^ that you express astonish- 
ment at my decision ?" 

'' Not at all/'Alexander replied. ^^Only, 
in my country there would have been a 
different verdict. Both disputants would 
have lost their heads, and the disputed 
treasure would go into the coffers of the 
King." 

The King, astonished in return, clasped 
his hands, and asked of the Monarch : 
*^Does the sun shine in your country? 
And do the heavens let fall the rain 
upon you ?" 

'' Yes," replied Alexander. 

" Then the Gods must permit both be- 
cause of the innocent animals there," 



PARABLES AND ALLEGORIES. 53 

continued the King, ^^'for over a race so 
unjust the sun should not be permitted 
to shine nor the rain to fall." 



THE YOUTHFUL SOLOMON, 

To his first favorite spoke once a good, 
kind King. -^ Ask of me whatsoever 
thou wilt and it shall be granted thee." 

And in his heart soliloquised the 
young man. '^ Now, what I request of 
the King, that it shall be best for me ? 
Honor I have already; silver and gold 
are the most perfidious presents of the 
earth. Concerning the King's daughter 
will I pray my master, that she be given 
to me in marriage, for she loves me as I 
love her, and with her I will receive all 
good things. Also the heart of my be- 
nign benefactor, for through this bestowal 
of his daughter he will become my father." 



54 CULLINGS FROM CARMEL ; 

The favorite prayed accordingly, and 
his prayer was granted. 

When the Lord first revealed Himself 
to young Solomon in a dream. He said 
unto him, '' Pray, and whatsoever thou 
askest I will give unto thee." 

And the young King prayed, not for 
silver, nor for gold, nor yet for honor, nor 
glory, nor long life. He prayed for the 
bestowal of the daughter of God, which 
is Heavenly Wisdom, and he received 
along with Wisdom all that his heart 
could conceive or desire. 

To Wisdom, whom he had espoused^ 
Solomon dedicatad all his beautiful songs, 
and praised her before all the nations as 
the only happiness of the earth. As 
long as he loved Wisdom Solomon pos- 
sessed the favor of God, the love and es- 
teem of men. Yes, through her he 
lives yet, ages after death, in the immor- 
tal songs of his creation. 



PARABLES AND ALLEGORIES. 55 

THE PSALMIST. 

The Psalm-Singer of Israel had just 
closed one of his most sublime and beau- 
tiful productions; yet lingered the holy 
air upon the strings of his harp, when 
Satan appeared, and stood before him, 
and sought to incite the soul of David 
to arrogance and pride because of the 
beauty of his songs. 

"Hast thou^ Oh Lord," said the sweet 
singer, "one am.ongst all thy creatures^ 
which praises thee sweeter than I ?" 

And through the open casement, be- 
yond which the Psalmist had stretched 
his hands, there flew in a grass-hopper^^ 
that alighted upon the seam of his robe 
and began his morning song. And at 
once a great multitude of grass-hoppers 
assembled themselves in sweet concord 
about the Psalmist. A nightingale flew 



56 CULLINGS FROM CARMEL; 

forth^ and forthwith vied all the nightin- 
gales of the grove in praises to God. 

And the ear of the King heard the 
song of the birds^ the voices of the grass- 
hoppers^ the murmur of the brooks, the 
roar of the wind-swept groves, the sing- 
ing of the stars, and the mighty sound 
of the rising sun. 

Lost with bewilderment in the high 
harmonies of the voices about him, which 
incessantly and indefatigably praised the 
Lord, the Psalmist and his harp were 
dumb together, for his song fell far be- 
hind the song of the grass-hopper, that 
was yet upon the seam of his robe. 

With humbled soul he took his harp 
and sang. " Bless the Lord, all ye, his 
creatures ; and praise the Lord also my 
inmost being, and thou my soul that 
hath been made dumb.'' 



PARABLES AND ALLEGORIES. 57 

THE DEATH OF ADAM. 

And Adam was nine hundred and 
thirty years old^ when he heard the voice 
of the Judge, saying unto him, ^^Adam, 
thou shalt die!" 

Then Adam said unto Eve, his mourn- 
ing spouse, ^' Let all my sons come in 
before me, that I may behold their faces 
yet once more and bless them." 

And they came — all the sons of Adam, 
at the word of their father, and stood be- 
fore him, many hundreds in number, and 
interceded the Lord for his life. 

^^ Wht) of you," said Adam, will go to 
the holy mountain ? Peradventure he 
may find mercy for me there, and bring 
me of the fruit of the Tree of Life. 

And of the sons of Adam, each offered 
himself; and Seth, the most devout and 
pious of them all, was chosen by his 
father to go upon the pilgrimage. And 



58 CULLINGS FROM CARMEL; 

Seth^ his head sprinkled with ashes, has- 
tened until he stood before the gate of 
the Heavenly Paradise, the abode of the 
Lord. 

And Seth prayed: " Let him find 
mercy merciful Father, and send my 
fiither of the fruit of the Tree of Life, 
that he may live and not die." 

And swift responding there stood be- 
fore the supplicant a cherub, and tasted 
of the fruit of the Tree of Life, the an- 
gel bore in his hand a bunch of three 
leaves. 

Said the cherub to Seth ; '^ Take thesa 
to thy father for his last refreshment, 
for eternal life is not on earth. Haste 
thee, for his hour has come.'' 

So Seth hastened back, and kneeling 
before the dying Adam, said : ^'0! father, 
I do not bring thee of the fruit of the 
Tree of Life^ but this bunch gave me the 



PARABLES AND ALLEGORIES. 59 

angel for thjlast refreshment and conso- 
lation here on earth." 

And Adam took the bunch of three 
leaves^ and rejoiced himself in its fra- 
grancO;, smelling of its odors, and its in- 
cense was the incense of Paradise. Then 
his soul hfted and Adam spoke : 

'' My children, eternity for mortals ex- 
isteth not on this earth. You will fol- 
low me. But in these leaves I breathe 
the breath of another life — another 
world — and read the promise of rest and 
eternal happiness in Paradise." 

And when Adam had thus spoken, his 
eye dimmed, and his soul fled. 

The children of Adam buried their 
father, and mourned over him for the 
space of thirty days. But Seth, alone, 
did not weep. He planted the branch of 
three leaves upon the grave of Adam, 
and called it new life, saying: He will 
awake out of the sleep of death. 



^0 CULLINGS FROM CARMEL; 

The small branch became a great tree, 
and the children of the First Parent do 
ever strengthen themselves in it with 
the consolation and promise of the Fu- 
ture Life. 



SMILING IN DEATH, 

A pious old man being nigh unto the 
gates of death, and about to enter, as- 
sembled at his death-bed all his children 
and grand-children. 

He seemed to sleep for a moment, and 
in his sleep he smiled three times. His 
eyes were shut; when he opened them 
one of his sons asked the reason of those 
smiles. 

^•^The first time,'' ansvv^ered the good 
man^ '' I smiled at the retrospection of 
the pleasures I have enjoyed in my life, 
and could not but smile at the folly of 



PARABLES AND ALLEGORIES. gl 

men who treasure these soap-bubbles of 
existence as important things. 

" Secondly — I recollected myself of 
all the troubles I have endured as so 
many thorns^ and I smiled to know that 
I now go hence to enjoy the roses." 

" Thirdly— I reflected on death, and 
I smiled as I contemplated the exceeding 
mercifulness of God^ who sends his an- 
gel to end our sufferings^ and bear us 
hence unto the place of eternal rest and 

joy-" 



THE DAY BEFORE DEATH. 

A wise man hath said :. '' Do thy re- 
pentance one day before thy death.'' But 
reason asks^ which is this day? and who 
may know the day in which it is appoint- 
ed he shall die ? 

A King invited his servants to a great 
repastj but informed them not of the hour 



Q2 CULLINGSFROM CAKMEL; 

appointed for the feast to take place ; so 
it ^^as uncertain. 

And they among the invited servants 
who were wise, prepared themselves, 
saying: " There is no want of anything 
in the house of our King ; therefore, the 
banquet may be made ready at any mo- 
ment, and we be summoned to partake 
thereof." 

But the foolish among them made no 
preparation to obey the summons of the 
King, but went about their own pleas- 
ures, saying: ^^It is yet a long while be- 
fore we will be called, and we shall have 
ample time to make ourselves ready." 

Suddenly the hour came, the call Vv^as 
sounded. The wise, who were all ready 
and adorned, went in unto the feast; but 
the fools who were taken unprepared, 
were shut out, and sent away. 

They had -robbed themselves, by their 



PARABLES AND ALLEGORIES. gg 

own apathy of the honor of feasting with 
their own Lord and King. 



SOLOMON IN HIS OLD AGE. 

When years had increased upon Solo- 
mon^ and his head became hoary, pleas- 
ures, riches and honor began to dazzle 
him, so that he forgot the bride of his 
youth — the daughter of Wisdom and 
Knowledge, and his heart turned towards 
the vain illusions of the world. 

Walking in the beautiful garden of his 
palace one day, he overheard the ani- 
mals, the birds and trees in converse, and 
understanding their language, he inclined 
his ear to listen to what they might 
say: Said the lilly : "'^See, Solomon, the 
King! he passes so proudly over me; 
yet I through humility am more magnifi- 
cent than he." 



64 CULLINGS FROM CARMEL; 

Said the palm tree : '^ Here he comeS;, 
the oppressor of his people ! he who is 
not so worthy of praise as I. Where are 
his fruits, his branches, with which he 
refreshes man?" 

And the nightingale sang to her love : 
^^ As greatly and sweetly we love each, 
so loves Solomon not ; he is not so loved 
by all his coquettes and concubines." 

And the turtle cooed to her mate : 
'' Of his thousand wives none will mourn 
him as I would mourn for thee, if dead, 
my only one." 

And Solomon listening, heard all that 
was said, and angrily hastened, and pass- 
ed on by the nest of the stork that bring- 
eth up her young and with her wings 
teacheth them to fly. 

Said the stork to her young : '^ This 
does not King Solomon do with his way- 
ward son Rehabeam, therefore, will his 
son come to naught, nor succeed to the 



PARABLES AND ALLEGORIES. 65 

throne ; but strangers will reign in the 
beautiful palaces that he hath builded." 

And when Solomon heard this of the 
stork, he hastened still the ra or e^ and 
entered into his inner chamber, where 
he remained meditative and sad. 

And as he considered on his past ways 
of wickedness and forgetfulness of God, 
the bride of his youth— Wisdom^ the 
daughter of the Lord, whom he had for- 
saken, entered his chamber, and stood 
invisible before him, and touched his 
eyes. So a deep sleep fell upon Solo- 
mon, and as he slept he saw" a sad vision 
that revealed future sorrow and trouble. 
He saw, through the sins of his unwise 
son Rehabeam, his Kingdom divided, 
and a stranger the Ruler over the Ten 
Tribes. He saw destroyed and in utter 
ruin his temples, his pleasant houses and 
his pleasure gardens. He saw the city 
of Jerusalem desolated and the Temple 



66 CULLINGS FROM CARMEL ; 

of God burning with flowers. Horrified 
and alarmed Solomon awoke from his vi- 
sion. 

Then with weeping eyes, approached 
Wisdom^ the bride of his youth, his good 
councellor, and said : " Thou hast seen, 
Solomon, what will come to pass after 
thy reign, and thou by thy sins, hast 
laid the foundation of the disasters to 
thy Kingdom. It is not now in thy 
power to alter and amend the past; thou 
art not able to command the stream to 
return* to its source. Neither mayest 
thou recall thy youth which is gone, 
never to return. My soul is wearied, 
thy heart empty, and I, whom thou aban- 
donedst, canst no more be thy playmate 
and companion, in the Land of the Mor- 
tal." 

Thus speaking, she disappeared with 
a pitying look. And Solomon, who had 
adorned his youth with roses, wrote in 



PARABLES AND ALLEGORIES. QJ 

his old age^ that wonderful book of songs, 
based upon the variety of human things 
on earth, and the emptiness of human 
glory and pleasures. 



RACHAEL'S TOMB. 

When Jacob had returned from the 
holy spot, where once the Lord had re- 
vealed Himself to him, as in his youth 
he sought the heavenly way, his heart 
was filled with gratitude and joy, espe- 
cially since the Lord had renewed His 
friendship and alliance. 

But soon a bitter grief fell upon Ja- 
cob. The love of his youth, Rachael^ 
died at the birth of her second son. In 
her last agony, when her soul was about 
to be exhaled, she kissed her new-born 
babe, and called him "Ben Oniy' the Son 
^1 Pain, and then she expired. 



gg CULLINGS FPOM CARMEL ; 

Appeared before the Eternal, Rachael 
wept and said: "Fulfil, 0! my Father, 
this first request of thy servant. Let 
me behold sometimes the faces of those 
from whom Thou hast separated me; for 
I can assist themx in their sorrow, and 
make fewer and less bitter their tears." 

And the Lord answered: "Rachael, 
thy wish shall be granted thee, and thou 
shalt see thy children on the earth; but 
to make less bitter and fewer their tears, 
thou canst not/' 

And Rachael, permitted to re-visit the 
earth, found the aged Jacob bowed down 
with grief, mourning for the loss of his 
two sons. 

The bloody robe of the missing Jos- 
eph lay by his side. "My gray hairs," 
he mourned, '' will be brought down in- 
to the grave by reason of my grief, and 
I shall wander with sorrow to the dead, 
for '^^Ben Onf will also be taken from me." 



PARABLES AND ALLEGORIES. gg 

Sighing, Rachael returned to heaven, 
her abode, and behold her husband and 
her sons came themselves through the 
gates of death, and told her most joy- 
fully how their sorrows had been changed 
into gladness^ and how they had been 
comforted. 

Then she made dry their eyes, wiping 
away all tears, and went down yet a 
second time upon the earth, and sat up- 
on her grave. And behold she found 
her children driven into misery ; their 
habitation destroyed, and also her grave. 
For a long time she rested upon her des- 
olate grave, and a sigh came out of the 
ground. 

When Rachael had returned to heaven^ 
the Lord said unto her : ^^ Be content, 
my daughter, and do no more trouble 
thy heart concerning the sufferings of thy 
children. The path of mortals leads in 
the ways of mourning ; soon as the val- 



70 CULLINGS FROM CARMEL; 

ley be passed the lamentations will give 
place to songs of praise and gladness. 
Trust thy children to me, for they are 
also my children. Thy heart is not crea- 
ted to suffer, nor yet is it thy mission to 
assume the misfortunes of the dust-born! 

So Rachael's soul remained forthwith 
in Paradise, in blissful peace, and no more 
returned to earth, and the grave from 
which long since had escaped the sigh of 
her mother's heart. No more does her 
soul remember her lot upon earth, her 
sorrows and tribulations. 

The tomb is silent, and Rachael re- 
joined to her children, enjoys with them 
the eternal peace of Paradise. 



PARABLES AND ALLEGORIES. 71 



NOAH'S DOVE. 

Now, for eight days Noah waited for 
the return of the faithless raven, but she 
came not. Then Noah called again 
around him his troop of birds, to choose 
new spies. 

And the dove flew timidly, and alight- 
ing upon Noah's wrist, offered herself as 
a messenger. " Daughter of Truth," 
spoke Noah, -^ thou wouldst be unto me 
the herald of God's message; bat how 
wilt thou accomplish thy journey, and 
fulfil thy mission. Thy delicate wings 
will droop fatigued ; the storm seize thee, 
and draw thee into the waves of death; 
also, thy feet are not webbed, and thy 
tongue is against unclean food." 

And the dove made answer — '' who 
giveth strength to the weak, and power 
to the powerless ? Let me go ; I will 



72 CULLINGS FROM CARMEL; 

certainly be the herald of a good mesvsage 
unto thee." 

Then away flew the dove ; and she 
searched here and there, but found no 
perch upon which to alight and rest her- 
self. But soon the Mountain of Para- 
dise arose before her; for the waters of 
the deluge could not cover this holy 
Mountain, and the dove found upon it a 
place of rest. 

And growing there upon the Mountain 
of Paradise was a fine olive tree, flour- 
ishing in green leaves. So the dove 
plucked off a leaf from this tree, and 
flew back to the Ark and to Noah, and 
laid the olive branch before Noah. 

And Noah aw^oke, and was regaled by 
the perfume of Paradise. His heart 
was greatly refreshed, for the green leaf 
refreshed all; for they knew it was a 
sign that the waters of death had abated 
from the earth. 



PARABLES AND ALLEGORIES. 73 

Ever since that time the dove hath 
been the servant of love and the Mes- 
senger of Peace. 



SAMMAEL, 

When God created man from the dust 
of the earth, and crowned the perisha- 
ble dust with the likeness of His own 
image/ He introduced him to all the heav- 
enly creatures, and the angels about the 
throne. And the legion of angels bowed 
themselves before him as their youngest 
brother. They served him joyfully at 
his wedding feast in Paradise. 

Only one of them, the proud Sammael, 
who spoke mockingly of man. 

'^Am I not," said he, /'created of 
light, and not of the dust? The glory 
which streameth from the throne gave 
me existence, not the fallen earth." 



74 CULLINGS FROM CARMEL ; 

And behold, at that moment, the 
stream of light gave way, and passed 
from Sammael; the robe that enveloped 
and adorned him, melted away like snow, 
and the proud and haughty Sammael, 
appeared at once the worst object, for the 
light and power which was not his, but 
the Fathers, had gone out from him for- 
ever. 

Full of anger at what had befallen 
him, Sammael slipped from the midst of 
the heavenly troop and accosted the in- 
nocent human being, threatening him 
with vengeance. 

Said he, addressing man: ^^I have 
been mide unhappy through you; now 
shall you be made unhappy through me.'' 

He had heard of the prohibition of the 
fruit of the forbidden tree; so the fallen 
Sammael gathered his lost and scattered 
rags, and sought to mislead man by as- 
suming the figure of an angel. But the 



PARABLES AND ALLEGORIES. 75 

snow that served him as a robe, melted 
from off him, and as he went the way as 
a false leader, behold, so even he appear- 
ed as a serpent, in glittering colors, 
which when Eve saw she admired, and 
fell in converse with the serpent. Soon 
she was persuaded to eat of the fruit of 
the Tree, and as she eat she plucked and 
gave to her husband, so that he did also 
eat of the fruit of Death. 

Then sickness and misery sprang up 
as the lot of man, and all the genera- 
tions of the earth. 

The Father of man appeared. He 
judged the misguided subject with mer- 
cy, but the misguiding serpent he pun- 
ished wdth a curse, exceedingly abomina- 
ble, and converted it into a worm, say- 
ing unto Sammael, ^'As it was thy 
highest joy to make man unhappy^ so ta 
ever experience his hate and malignit}^ 
shall be thy unhappy lot." 



76 CULLINGS FROM CARNEL; 

Banished from the troop of the bless- 
edj and from the presence and face of the 
Father/Sammael no more wrought among 
the angels of lights but cast forth he be- 
ldame the Angel of Death, and so he con- 
tinues to this day. 



THE RABBI iMEIER, 

The Rabbi Meier went into the temple 
on a certain Sabbath, and sat teaching 
the people. And in his absence his two 
sons died. And his wife took them and 
carried them upon a housetop, and laid 
them out, and covered them over with a 
white cloth. 

And in the evening when the Rabbi 
returned home, he asked his wife con- 
cerning his two sons, saying, '^ where 
are my two sons?" Bring them to me 
that I may bless them," 



PARABLES AND ALLEGORIES. 77 

^'They have gone into the school^ possi- 
bly, for I have looked around and have 
not observed them." 

And the wife gave the goblet unto her 
husband, and he drank, praising the Lord, 
for the Sabbath was novf gone. 

And again he asked :_ '' Where are my 
two sons, that they may drink with me 
the blessed wine ?" 

'' They cannot be far ofi'/' replied the 
wife, and she put before her husband the 
food prepared for the household. 

After the good Eabbi had ate and 
drank he rejoiced himself again, and then 
his good wife came and put her arms 
about his neck. 

" Good Rabbi," said she, " allow me a 
question." " Speak," he said : and she 
proceeded : ^^ A few days ago, a kind 
friend gave me a precious gift to keep. 
Now he asks me to give them back. 
Shall I give them ?" 



78 CULLINGS FROM CARMEL; 

^^Why dost thou ask me ?'V answered 
the Rabbi. '^Wouldst thou hesitate to 
render back to thy benefactor that which 
is his property?" 

Then the wife wept; and she led the 
Rabbi up to the housetop where she un- 
covered the faces of their dead sons. 

"Alas, my sons, my sons," cried the 
father, and wept bitter and sore. 

And they both wept together. 

Then the wife and mother took the 
hand of the Rabbi and said : " Rabbi, 
has thou not taught me that I should 
not refuse to render back the gift that 
has been bestowed upon me ? See ! the 
Lord hath given, and the Lord hath ta- 
ken away; blessed be the name of the 
Lord." 

And they wept together, consoling one 
another. 



PARABLES AND ALLEGORIES. 79 

THE INN. 

A Dervish who traA^eled through Tar- 
tary, came to Balk, a great city, wherein 
he blessed himself, and entered into the 
Palace of the King, which was then kept 
as an hostelry or inn, for the entertain- 
ment of man and beast. 

And the Dervish, after he had looked 
around him, making himself comfortable 
and at home, stepped into a long gallery/ 
and laid away his baggage and spread 
down his carpet to rest upon, after the 
manner of the orientals. He was scarcely 
yet wrapped in repose, before the guard 
of the palace stumbled upon him, and 
asked him why he was there, and all about 
him. 

The Dervish w^as very much alarmed 
and disconcerted, but he answered very 
quickly, that he was fatigued and intend- 
ed to lodge there for the night, as it was 



80 CULLINGS FROM CARMEL; 

a house of entertainment and a place for 
the caravans. 

The guard was wroth and very indig- 
nant, and explained to the Dervish that 
his resting Place was the palace of the 
King and not an iiln. At the same mo- 
ment, the King himself passed by and 
laughed at the astonishment of the Der- 
vish, who had mistaken his private pal- 
ace for an inn. 

. "^ Sir," replied the Dervish, " allow 
me to address to your Majesty some ques- 
tions : Who were the persons who first 
dwelt in this Palace after it was reared?" 
" My ancestors," replied the King. "^'And 
who was the last person who lodged 
within these walls ?" questioned the Der- 
vish. " My father," answered the King. 
^^ And who is dwelling in it to-day?" re-. 
torted the Dervish. ^^ Myself," answer- 
ed the King. "^ And who wdll occupy it 
after you?" '^ The Young Prince, my 



PARABLES AND ALLEGORIES. 81 

Son." " Ah, my Lord/' answered the 
Dervish, '- an house that changeth in- 
habitants so often, and whose tenants 
come and go so rapidly, must need be 
nothing but an inn — a caravansary;' 

The King stood in profound medita- 
tion. Then he took a pike^ some five or 
six feet in length, and made a sign upon 
the ground, and spoke unto his son, the 
Young Prince : '^ Why so much sweat 
and labor? At the end of all things 
neither you nor I will possess that for 
which we strive. Of nothing we are 
certain, save that which we now possess.'' 



AURORA. 

Hast thou beheld the beautiful Auro- 
ra? She shines out of God's heavens, 
and her imperishable rays are the conso- 
lation of men. 



82 CULLINGSFROM CARMEL; 

David beset and presented by his ene- 
mies^ sat one dreadful night on Mount 
Hermon^ and upon his tuneful harp he 
rehearsed one of his mournful psalms. 
-' The lions and tigers roar about mine 
ears, the bands of the wicked surround 
me, and I see no helper.'' 

And beautiful Aurora, arose and ap- 
proached David, and spake unto him 
like an angel: '^ Why dost thou grieve 
thyself because thou wert abandoned? 
I have come out from the dark night, 
and from this horrible obscurity I bring 
the morning." 

And David was greatly consoled, and 
his eye he lifted confidently upon her, 
until she appeared as a sun, and upon 
her wings arose the salvation of the 
world. 

And he sang with joy and confidence ; 
and his new song he called the song of 
Aurora, the early chosen head. 



PARABLES AND ALLEGORIES. 83 

In later days David often sang this 
psalm, and praised God for the many op- 
pressions he escaped in his youthful 
days ; and in the hours of sadness and 
gloom the psalm of Aurora came to cheer 
his drooping heart. 

Holy Aurora ! beautiful daughter of 
God, thou lookest down daily and conse- 
cratest the heavens and the world. Con- 
secrate thou also my heart for thy silent 
in-dwelling. 



DAVID AND JONATHAN, 

When David the son of Isai, was 
dead, he met in the valley of death Jo- 
nathan, the friend of his youth. 

" Our alliance is forever" said Jona- 
than to the old King, ^' but I cannot give 
thee my right hand, for thou art covered 
with blood — with the blood of my fa- 



84 CULLINGS FROM CARMEL; 

ther s house^ and thou art laden with the 
remembrance of my son. Follow me/' 
and David followed the heavenly youth. 

'' Alas," said he unto himself, '' a hard 
and grievous thing is the life of a man, 
but a harder and more grievous is the 
life of a King. If I had died like thou, 
0, Jonathan, with innocent heart, in the 
best of my years ; or if I were again a 
sinless shepherd in the fields of Bethle- 
hem. A blessed life hast thou passed 
in Paradise — why died I not with thee?" 

"^ Do not," said Jonathan, '^grumble 
against Him who gave unto thee the 
crown of his people, and made thee the 
father and founder of an eternal King- 
dom. I have taken heed of thy works 
and thy sufferings, and have expected 
thee here." 

And Jonathan with these words, led 
David to the stream of Paradise. 

^•^Drink, 0, David," said Jonathan, *^^and 



PARABLES AND ALLEGORIES. §5 

all thy cases shall be forgotten ; wash 
thyself in this stream and thou wilt he 
made young again^ and more beautiful 
than thou wast in thy youth when I loved 
thee, and we swore to each other an al- 
liance of true fidelity." 

And David did as Jonathan had bid- 
den him. He drank of the holy waters, 
and washed himself therein. The drink 
took away each and every care of earth, 
but the wave of the stream pierced him 
deep, and like fire it glowed in his soul^ 
until he stood purified* and cleared of sin, 
the equal of his friend, Jonathan. 

And Jonathan gave the harp into the 
hands of David, now grown youthful and 
beautiful again ; and he sang sweeter than 
when he was upon the earth, and thus 
ran, the song. ^^David and Jonathan de- 
lightful in life, are not separated in death. 
Buoyant as the eagle, more agile than 
the doe upon the hills. Ye daughters of 



86 CULLINGS FROM CARMEL ; 

Israel^ do not mourn for us, we are re- 
stored to each other, and dressed in 
youthful ornaments. In thee I rejoice 
myself, 0, Brother Jonathan, for thy 
love here is more to be desired than the 
love of our youth." Then they kissed 
each other, and swore a new alliance of 
true inseparable love to continue forever. 



THE CONQUERER OF THE 
WORLD. 

One day Alexander the Great came 
to the banks of a stream flowing through 
Paradise. He drank of the crystal wa- 
ters and wvas refreshed ; he washed there- 
in and his face was made to look rosy 
and youthful. He followed the stream 
through the deserts, and it brought him 
to the gates of Paradise. ^^ Open unto 
me," said Alexander, ^^for I am the Con- 



PARABLES AND ALLEGORIES. 87 

querer of the Worlds the King of the 
earth." But the keeper of the gate an- 
swered : " Thou art pointed with blood, 
go! This is the holy gate wherein only 
the righteous and just may pass." '' Then 
give me," begged Alexander, ^* some sou- 
venter of this place, that I may exhibit 
it and prove my visit here." 

And there was delivered unto him the 
skull of a dead man. Indignant, Alexan- 
der took the skull, but as he walked 
along, the skull became so heavy in his 
hand that he could scarcely bear it, nor 
could it be out-weighed by all the gold 
and treasures of Persia. 

Perplexed beyond measure, Alexan- 
der called unto him a vrise man, and con- 
sulting him, asked what it meant. And 
the wise man answered : '^ That skull 
which thou bearest is thyself. So long 
as thine eyes are open, thou canst get 
enough of gold and silver ; but see, I 



88 CULLINGS FROM CARMEL; 

strew dust upon this skullj and cover it 
up with a little handful of earth, and be- 
hold the skull that is so heavy in thy 
hand will become as light as any other 
skull." And he did so, using a little dust, 
and a little earth, and it was even so ; 
the skull was as light as any other skull. 
So it happened unto Alexander as it 
had been foretold. He came back with 
his army, and died at Babel. His King- 
dom was broken in pieces, and the head 
of the Conqueror of the World was laid 
as low as any other skull could possibly 
be laid. 



THE STARS. 



And the Prophet Daniel was fatigued 
by the vision of the future, when an an- 
gel of the Lord appeared, and said unto 
him . '' Go Daniel, and rest until the end 



PARABLES AND ALLEGORIES. 89 

oomes^ for thou wilt rise at the last day, 
for thy part." 

And Daniel listened calmly to the 
problematical words of the angel of the 
Lord, who stood by his side. 

" Do you mean/' said Daniel, ^' that 
these bones shall be brou2:ht to lifeao;ain?" 
And the heavenly messenger took him 
by the hand, and showed him the heax^ens 
lighted up by myriards of stars. 

'' Many there be," said the angel, ^' and 
many that sleep in the dust of the earth 
shall awake, and they that be wise shall 
shine as the brightness of the firmament, 
and they that turn many to righteous- 
ness, as the stars forever and ever." 

Thus spake the angel and touched 
Daniel with his ri^ht hand ; and Daniel 
fell asleep overwhelmed by the sight of 
the heavens and the exceeding brightness 
of the stars. 



90 CULLINGS FROM CARMEL ; 

THE TREES OF PARADISE. 

When God brought Adam into Para- 
dise, all the trees bowed themselves be- 
fore him; and every one offered him of 
their fruit, and the shade of their bran- 
ches. 

^^Oh! I wish he would choose me for 
his favorite/' said the palm tree, " I 
would nourish him with the fruit of my 
breast, and give him to drink of the wine 
of my sap ; of my leaves I would build 
him a pleasant bower, and overshadow 
him with my branches." 

Said the apple tree : "I would strew 
over thee my most beautiful blossoms, 
and refresh thee with my best fruits." 

So spake in their turn all the trees of 
Paradise, complimenting Adam. 

And.Jehovah led Adamto all the trees; 
and he named him the names that he 
should bestow upon them; and allowed 



PARABLES AND ALLEGORIES. 91 

him to eat of the fruit of all them^ save 
the fruit of the Tree of Knowledge of 
good and evil. 

When he was alone, Adam said unto 
himself. ^^A Tree of Knowledge, in- 
deed! all other trees yield me fruit fit 
only for the natural man/ and of these I 
may eat; but of the fruit of this tree 
that would illumine my soul, and open 
mine eyes, I am forbidden to eat." 

At first Adam put away the thought 
from his heart, but it intruded again and 
again, and when he was tempted of the 
Evil one, he tasted of the fruit that was 
accursed; and the poisonous sap of that 
tree is yet fermenting; in the blood of all 
the sons and dau2:hters of Adam. 

Thus we all do esteem too lightly what 
is permitted us to enjoy, and desire often 
that which is prohibited us. We do not 
wish to be happy through those things 
we already possess, and catch after that,^ 



92 CULLINGS FROM CARNEL; 

the attainment of which brings pain, as 
its penalty. 

'- Thou hast given unto man a hard 
prohibition/' said the angels unto the 
Lord ; '' for what is more stimulating to 
a creature whom thou hast endowed with 
reason than the getting of preception and 
knowledge? And for that, the trans- 
gression of thy prohibition, thou wilt 
punish Man with death." " Wait/' said 
the Lord, '^ and behold in what manner 
I shall punish him, only upon error's 
way shall he tread in thorny paths, until 
he reach repentance at last ; and there I 
will lead him to another tree— the tree 
of a higher Paradise — the tree of Eter- 
nal Life." 



PARABLES AND ALLEGORIES. 93 

THE TEST OF FAITH. 

For three days the heart of Abraham 
was heavy, for he had a presentment 
that his beloved son, Isaac, was to be ta- 
ken from his bosom. 

And on the fourth day it was told 
Abraham that the Lord had chosen Is- 
aac, for a sacrifice. Silently, without 
complaint or remonstrance, Abraham 
called his son, and taking him by the 
hand, led him up into Mount Moriah, and 
the place of sacrifice. The deepest grief 
afflicted his parental bosom, and his heart 
yearned for his son ; but he nevertheless 
proceeded to prepare for the offering 
which the Lord had demanded of him. 
Now spake his son, Isaac : " See father, 
here is the wood and the fire, but where 
is the lamb for the sacrifice T 

And Abraham answered: ^^My son, 
God himself hath chosen a lamb for the 



94 CULLINGS FROIvI CARMEL; 

sacrifice." And he laid his son^ bound 
upon the altar, and took into his hand 
the gleaming knife, and looked to heaven. 
The boy was resigned and silent, but 
with clasped hands and bosom bared to 
the knife, he looked also into heaven 
.with tearful eyes. 

The appealing tears in the eye of pa- 
rent and child pierced the clouds and 
went to the throne of God, making in- 
tercession for Isaac. And the Angel of 
the Lord called from heaven: ''Abraham, 
Abraham, slay not but spare the child, 
and do him no harm, for now I see thou 
art an upright man." 

Joyfully Abraham unbound and re- 
leased his son; and he called that place 
^^The Lord Seest it," which is to this 
day. 

He sees the silent tear in the eye of 
the uncomplaining sufferer ; He marks 
the tear of faith that wells up from the 



PARABLES AND ALLEGORIES. 95 

heart of the humble supplicant; He 
hears the cry of the anguished and op- 
pressedj and relieves them from their 
oppression. 

To Him whose eye of pity is ever 
open, a prayer is the heaving of a sigh; 
the whispered ejaculation of a soul in 
agony ; and to the appeal of stammering 
lips He sends down a response of mercy 
and blessing. 

Mighty, too, are the tears of those who, 
forsaken of men continue steadfast in the 
faith of God. The tear of faith bursts 
wide the gates and barriers of earth, and 
penetrates the heavens, yea, to the very 
footstool of the Eternal One. 



THE VINE. 

At the creation of heaven and earth 
and all things that are in them, the trees 
that God created made much joy among 



96 CULLINGS FEOM CARMEL; 

themselves^ each praising its own excel- 
lence. 

Said the towering cedar : " The Lord 
hath planted me and united in me firm- 
ness, odor, duration and strength." 

Said the comely palm tree : ^' Jehovah 
in his grace and goodness hath planted me 
for a blessing to man^ and hath united in 
me usefulness and beauty." 

Said the apple tree : ^^ As a bride- 
groom amongst young men^ so I glitter 
amongst the trees of Paradise." 

Said the myrtle : " Like a thorn 
amongst roses do I stand among my sis- 
ters, the lover's bush." 

And so they all praised themselves 
with one exception. The vine alone was 
silent, and sank down upon the earth. 

And the vine said unto itself : "1 too 
am favored in stem, brand, blossom and 
fruit; but I will be humble, and yet hope 
and wait." Then the vine wept. 



PARABLES AND ALLEGORIES. 97 

But not long the vine waited and wept^ 
for soon man, the lord of the earth, pass- 
ed by. And he saw the feeble yine^ a 
plaything of the wind, that asked for 
succor. And he took pity on the vine 
and lifted it up, and made it to wreath 
about a bower. 

The air played with the grapes of the 
vine 5 the warm sun penetrated the same, 
and distilled the sweet sap that became 
the drink of God and men. 

Crowned with rich grapes the vine 
bowed itself to its master, who tasted of 
the refreshing sap, and became the stead- 
fast friend of the vine. 

Then the proud trees that boasted 
themselves became envious of the feeble 
tendiil ; for many of them already stood 
fruitless and barren, while the vine re- 
joiced in fullness and hope. 

And the sweet sap of the vine was 
nectar to the lips and heart of man; 



98 CULLINGS FKOM CARMEL; 

helped up the courage of them that were 
disheartened^ and refreshed and revived 
them that were afflicted. 

The parable of the vine teacheth us 
that the humblest among men need not 
abandon themselves to despair^ but learn 
to suffer, hope, and wait. From the in- 
significant cane is extracted the sweetest 
consolation ; and from the feeble vine 
springs enthusiasm and transport. 



DISPUTE OF THE MOUN- 
TAINS, 

When God descended upon Mount Si- 
nai, to deliver the hiw unto Moses, there 
came before Him the ghost of the moun- 
tains in the Land of Promise, saying : 
^^ why disdainest thou one of us for thy 
footstool, and why hast thou chosen a 
foreign mountain, a naked rock in the 



PARABLES AND ALLEGORIES. 99 

heated desert^ as a footstool for thy 
Majesty?" 

And Jehovah answered, ^^who art 
thou, that thou venturest to become the 
footstool of my glory? Look around! my 
face was there upon the sunken moun- 
tains and fallen hills of the olden time; 
where now is the crown of their pinna- 
cles? But upon you I will reveal my 
glory, and ye shall not be sunken nor 
consumed." 

And the Lord Jehovah revealed to 
every mountain its destiny, and foretold 
the great thing that should happen upon 
it. 

So the mountains rejoiced and clapped 
their hands, and no more envied Sinai. 

And the smallest among them, Mount 
Zion, became the greatest in sacred his- 
tory, because of the wonderful manifes- 
tations of which it was made the scene. 



100 CULLINGS FROM CARMEL ; 

THE TRANSLATION of AHRON 

Moses with a heavy heart, disrobed 
his brother, Aferon^ upon Mount Hor. 
He took off from him the holy garments, 
and put them upon Eleasar. And Ah- 
ron prepared himself, and died; for he 
also had sinned. And all Israel mourn- 
ed Ahron for the space of thirty days. 

On the thirtieth day of the period of 
mourning, Moses sat upon the brow of 
Mount Hor; and in a dream he saw his 
brother, Ahron. The glory of Jehovah 
gleamed upon his forehead, and there 
was more beauty about him than when 
dressed in his Priestly robes. A golden 
tablet adorned his breast, but the twelve 
holy stones were not upon it. The staff 
which had flourished in the earthly tab- 
ernacle was not in his hand. 

'' Why, my brother," said Moses^ ^4s 
not the staff of thy priest-hood in thy 



PARABLES AND ALLEGORIES. IQl 

liand^ and why do no more shine upon 
thy breast the twelve tablets of stone?" 
And Ahron answered : '^ Brother^ they 
\vere burdensome enough unto me when 
I was upon the earthy and bore them; 
but now my bosom is expanded and my 
soul relieved^ also the stafif of my tribe 
is no more in my hand ; because in the 
full presence of the Lord, all tribes, kin- 
dred, tongues and people are alike. There- 
fore, am I now a Priest in the Land of 
Peace." 



THE WONDER-STAFFOF THE 
PROPHET. 

^^Gird thy loins," spoke Elishah unto 
his servant, Gehasi, when the Sunami- 
tan wife called upon him for help to 
awake her son from the sleep of death. 
" Gird thou thy loins, and take this staff 



102 ' CULLINGS FEOM CARMEL ; 

into thy hand^ and go forth. If thou 
meetest any person in the way^ do not 
greet him, and if any person greet thee, 
do not thank him; but go thy way, and 
lay my staff upon the face of the boy, 
and his soul will return to him." 

And Gehasi, hastened, rejoicing in the 
possession of the wonder-staff of the 
Prophet, for he had coveted it long, be- 
cause he wished to perform a wonder. 

" Whither dost thou hasten, 0, Gehasi?" 
called unto him John, the son of Nimzi. 
•^ To awake a dead man," answered Ge- 
hasi, "'^and here I have with me the won- 
der-staff of the Prophet Elishah." 

So he soon assembled a multitude 
around him who followed him, and through 
every village which he passed, the peo- 
ple flocked behind him, curious to witness 
the awakening of a dead man. 

And Gehasi went on greatly elated; 
and when they had all come to Sunem, 



PARABLES AND ALLEGORIES. 103 

and the house of the deacl^ he laid the 
staff upon the dead child's face. But 
there was neither voice nor feeling, nor 
any sign of returning life. And Gehasi 
turned the staff to the right and to the 
left, and up and down, but the boy did 
not awake from the sleep of death. 

Then the multitude mocked at Gehasi^ 
who ashamed of himself went back to 
the Prophet Elishah, saying: ^'The boy 
did not awake." 

And Elishah himself took the staff, 
and hastened for Sunem, and went into 
the house, and put forth all that were in 
it, and locked the door. Then he pray- 
ed unto the Lord, and ascended the 
bier and laid himself, his mouth unto the 
dead child's mouth, his eyes upon the 
child's eyes, and spread himself out over 
it until the child grew warm, and his life 
returned to him. 

With what did the Prophet warm the 



104 CULLINGS FROM CARMEL ; 

dead unto life? With still and humble 
prayer ; with the breath of his disinter- 
ested love. 

And the Prophet said unto the moth- 
er, ^^Take thy son." And the vain and 
presumptuous Gehasi^ who stood by and 
saw the wonderful miracle, was abashed 
and ashamed. 



DAY AND NIGHT. 

Day and Night disputed together con- 
cerning their prerogative, because of the 
blessings they bestowed upon the earthy 
upon mankind and upon all living things. 

And the ardent bright and fiery Day 
began the disputation. 

'^Poor black Mother of Darkness/' 
said the Day^ '^of what canst thou boast 
as compared to my luminous sun, my 
over-arching heavens, my broad domain 
of busy-restless life? It is I who awaketh 



PARABLES AND ALLEGORIES. IQo 

to a new existence what thou hast put to 
sleep; I incite what thou hast relaxed." 
" But rendered one his thanks for thy 
incitement?" asked the modest veiled 
Night. " Must I not refresh what thou 
exhaustest^ and how may this be done^ 
save through a forgetfulness of thee? 
Mao, as soon as he toucheth the border 
of my robe^ forgeteth all thy delusions^ 
and lays down softly his head to slum- 
ber. And then I devote and nourish 
the quiet soul with heavenly dews; and 
the eye that could not lift itself to heav- 
en because of thy dazzling sun-beams, I 
open upon an innumerable array of new 
suns, new stars, and new hopes." Just 
then, the garrulous Day touched the hem 
of the robe of Night; and silent and low 
he sank with his head in her lap of dark- 
ness. But she, the Night, sat in her 
star-mantle and crown of stars, eternal 
quiet sleeping upon her placid face. 



106 CULLINGS FROM CARMEL; 

THE CHILDHOOD OF 
ABRAHAM. 

Now Abraham was brought up in a 
cavern^ because Nimrod the tyrant, per- 
secuted him, and sought to take away 
his life. But God w^as with him, and 
His light was a lamp unto him amid the 
darkness of the caA^ern. And Abraham 
in the solitude of the cavern, gave him- 
self unto meditation, and as he reflected 
he said unto himself — ^^who is my crea- 
tor ?" 

After sixteen years spent in the cav- 
ern, Abraham came forth to dwell among 
his people; and when for the first time 
he gazed upon the heavens and upon the 
earth, he was astonished, and rejoiced 
within himself with great joy. 

Of all the living creatures around him 
he also asked : " who is your creator?" 

The sun arose; and when Abraham 



PARABLES AXD ALLEGORIES. IQT 

saw the great and glorious orb^ he fell 
upon his face. ^'This/' said he, '^Ms the 
Creator, for his face and figure are beau- 
tiful and terrible to look upon." 

The sun ascended to the zenith of 
the sky, and went down in the evening. 

Then the moon arose, and Abraham, 
when he beheld it, said, "the setting light 
is not the God of heaven, and this is 
probably that smaller light w^hom all 
the stars serve." 

But moon and stars sat and Abraham 
was alone. Then went he to his father, 
and asked him : " Father, who is the God 
of heaven and earth?" And Therah 
showed him his idols. 

And when he was alone, Abraham said 
unto himself, '^I will examine them." 

So he sat before them dishes of ex- 
cellent food, saying, " If ye are truly 
living gods, ye will accept my offering.' 
But the gods stirred not, nor made they 



108 CULLINGS FROM CARNEL; 

any movement^ nor bowed their heads 
in token of the acceptance of the offer- 
ing. 

"And these/' said the disgusted youth, 
" my father keeps as gods!" 

Then Abraham lifted his staff, and 
smote them on the head, every one of 
them, and brake them all, save the great- 
est, into whose hand he placed his staff, 
and ran unto his father. 

"Father, father," he exclaimed, ^Hhy 
first god hath killed all his brothers." 

And Therah was exceedingly angry, 
and said unto his son, "You mock me, 
my boy. How can that be, when with 
mine own hands I made this god?" 

" My father," continued Abraham, "do 
not reproach me, but let your ear listen 
to what thy mouth hath uttered. If you 
believe that this god is not able to do 
what I can, how can he be the god that 
made me and thee, and heaven and earth?" 



PARABLES AND ALLEGOEIES. 109 

And Therah was silent upon the words 
of his son/ for they were words of wis- 
dom to which he conld make no reply. 

Now this deed of Abraham was soon 
told unto the tyrant Nimrod, who com- 
manded in great wrath, that he should 
be brought before him. And when he 
came into his presence, he addressed 
him : '^ Thou shalt worship my god^ or 
the burning oven shall reward thy tem.er- 
ity." (For it had been predicted by all 
the wise men^ upon the birth of iibra- 
ham, that he would overturn the idols 
and destroy the power of the King; 
therefore he persecuted him.) 

" Who is thy god, 0, King T asked 
Abraham with boldness and intrepidity. 
"The fire is my god/' answered the 
King; '' the mightiest of beings." 

" The fire/' responded the boy^ "is ex- 
tinguished by the water ; the water is 
carried away into the clouds ; the clouds 



110 CULLINGS FROM CARMEL; 

are driven away by the winds, and man 
resists the winds ; so is man the mighti- 
est of beings." 

" And I am the mightiest among men/' 
roared the Tyrant ; ^' worship me, or the 
red-hot oven is thy reward !" 

The youthful Abraham, in nowise 
alarmed nor abashed, lifted his modest 
eye, and replied : " Yesterday I saw the 
sun arise ; also I saw the sun go down. 
Now 0, King, if thou be the greatest, 
command that the sun rise up this eve- 
ning in the West, and go down on the 
morrow morning in the East; and then 
if the sun obey, I will adore you." 

And Abraham was cast into the heat- 
ed oven and the glowing fire. 

But an Angel of the Lord accompanied 
him into the furnace, and kept him in 
his arms, and the glowing fire did him no 
injury, neither did the terrible flames 
harm him. And more beautiful and cour- 



PARABLES AND ALLEGORIES. m 

rageous than before came Abraham out 
of the heated oven and the fire. 

Therefore, the Lord led Abraham from 
Chaldeah, and honored him ; and Abra- 
ham became a founder of the faith of the 
true Grodj the One of Heaven and of 
Earth. 



INGRATITUDE THE REWARD 
OF THE WORLD. 

A peasant was laboring in his field. 
And as he wrought, he heard a lament- 
ing cry, oft repeated, and it said, '• help 
me! help me!" And the peasant run- 
ning forward to see whence came this 
strange lamentation, found a heavy stone 
lying upon a hole in the earth, and from 
the aperture within came the voice that ut- 
tered the lamentation, " help me ! help 
me! 

And the peasant felt pity in his breast, 



112 CULLINGS FROM CARMEL; 

and he rolled away the stone from the 
mouth of the cave, Imagine his aston- 
ishment and alarm, when behold, a great 
serpent came forth, uncoiling herself, 
raising her head, opening her mouth, as 
though making ready to devour him. 

" Have mercy on me !" implored the 
l)easant. '•' For I have a wife and three 
children at home. Moreover, is this the 
reward you would return for having re- 
leased you from the cave?" 

^^Well," replied the serpent, licking 
her jaws, ^'do you not know, or have 
you yet to learn that ingratitude is the 
recompense of the world?" 

'' I never heard so," begged the tremb- 
ling peasant. '' But let me, I beg of you, 
ask of witnesses, and if they agree with 
you, then will I submit to be devoured." 

^"Well," answered the serpent, ^^I grant 
your request this time." 

So the peasant and the serpent went 



PARABLES AND ALLEGORIES. Hg 

on together; and soon they came upon a 
cow, cropping the grass. And they made 
known to the kine the subject of their 
quarrel, and the issue that depended on 
her answer. And the cow made answer : 
" I am the best cow in my master's sta- 
ble ; I yield the dairy daily about twen- 
ty measures of rich milk. But I expect 
that by to-morrow my master will sell 
me to the butcher; he will slaughter me 
and sell my meat in the market, and 
make boots and shoes of my hide. For 
so it is the custom of the world to repay 
and reward with ingratitude." 

•^Do you not hear?" chuckled the ser- 
pent with glee. ^^ Peasant, I must de- 
vour you." 

^^Not so, yet," begged the peasant. 
" Let me, I pray you, hear one other wit- 
ness before you devour me." 

'' I will," replied the serpent. And 
they went on still further together until 

H 



114 CULLINGS FROM CARMEL; 

they espied an aged horse, nibbling of 
the poor pasture. This horse the pea- 
sant accosted. '^ Dear horse" said he, 
" come and listen to what I will relate 
^nd ask of vou." 

And he brought the question in dis- 
pute between himself and the serpent. 

••^Well," answered the horse, '^'formerly 
I was the finest steed of all the stud 
contained in my master's stables. He 
loved me, cared for me like one of his 
children. I was gaily caparisoned, pro- 
vided with straw for my bed in abun- 
dance, and had the best of provender. 
I was his choice when ray master travel- 
ed upon horseback ; and before he gave 
me the spur he treated me to sugar and 
sweet-meats. Now% I am old, lame and 
infirm, and my master for my brave 
handsome services requites me with this 
precarious subsistence, cleaned from this 
pastura.ge. And every hour I am in ex- 



PAEABLES AND ALLEGORIES. II5 

pectation that the executioner will come 
and knock me on the head^ for ingrati- 
tude is the world's reward." 

^^No;, no, not so yet/' cried the pea- 
sant in an agony of fear. '' Only one 
other witness permit me to consult, and 
if this one agree with you in your judg- 
ment, then I shall certainly submit to 
be devoured by you." 

"1 consent," yielded the serpent, 
'^ but no more than this one will I hear, 
I swear it." 

So they journeyed on together, until 
not far oflF, the peasant saw a fox cross- 
ing the highway, a little in advance of 
them. And the peasant called unto the 
fox with lamentations to pause and lis- 
ten to what he had to say; but the wiley 
reynard had no mind to stop and parley 
with the peasant. 

But the peasant continuing to repeat 
his lamentations and calls, saying; 'lis- 



IIQ CULLINGS FROM CARMEL: 

ten to me^ 0^ reynard^ for one moment 
and if you answer rightly my interroga- 
tion^ you will save the life of my wife 
and three children^ and receive as your 
reward freedom to banquet upon all the 
fowls of my poultry-house." 

The fox consented and the peasant 
stated the controversy pending between 
himself and the serpent. Then the fox 
shaking his head, indicative of incredu- 
lity, said: '^1 cannot understand that 
which thou hast explained unto me ; for 
I cannot believe, nor indeed comprehend 
hoAv so great a serpent, could accommo- 
date himself in such a small hole, as you 
represent." 

^^ Truly," interrupted the serpent, '^1 
can show it unto you, and make plain 
how I accommodated myself." 

And they set off to inspect the cave, 
the peasant, the serpent and the fox. 

The serpent coiled herself up in a nice 



PARABLES AND ALLEGORIES. H/ 

ball, comjoact and round^ and went into 
the hole. The fox winked to the pea- 
sant;, and the latter was only too glad to 
roll the stone back upon the aperture 
which imprisoned the serpent again^ as 
securely as before. 

" So it was I" cried the fox^, with laugh- 
ter, and ^^yes/' responded the serpent 
from his prison. ^' Now/' continued the 
fox addressing the serpent, " remain you 
so long in your hole again, until some 
other fool comes along to roll away the 
stone and release you." 

The peasant, saved from the mouth 
of the monster was very grateful. ^^ 
a thousand thanks!" exclaimed he. -'And 
dear Mr. Fox, this evening, come and 
make your banquet off the fine fat fowls 
of my poultry-house." 

The peasant went home to his family 
rejoicing, and they rejoiced with him 
greatly when he had told them all that 



118 CULLINGS FROM CARMEL : 

had happened to him, and how the strat- 
egy of the fox had saved him from the 
devouring jaws of the serpent. 

But they w^ere a little disconcerted 
and dismayed when he told them how. 
in the excess of his gratitude, he had 
rashly promised the fox all his chickens 
as a reward for saving his life. 

So the wife set her wits to work, and 
reflected how she could save the chick- 
ens. And she said, '' I have an excel- 
lent idea. I will watch, and when the fox 
comes to banquet upon my pullets, I will 
smite and slay him." 

The evening came at lasf, rnd the pea- 
sant, true to his promise, left ajar the 
door of the poultry-house, but did not 
perceive behind the door, his wife armed 
with an axe. 

The unsuspecting fox came, expecting 
his promised banquet in the chicken- 
house. Carefully and silently he stretch- 



I 



PARABLES AXD ALLEGORIES. JIQ 

ed his head into the doorway, and at the 
same moment, a deadly blow fell upon 
his head from the axe in the hands of 
the wife. The fox fell, and expiring ex- 
claimed with great lamentations and pain: 
'' Ingratitude is the reward and the rec- 
ompense of the world!" 



TO BE AFFRIGHTED IS TO 
BE SUBDUED. 

To approach an undertaking with ti- 
midity is to jeopardise every guarantee 
of success, and he who is aflrighted at 
the shadow will surely be without cour- 
age when the substance is reached. 

Life is a warfare, and to win success 
the actor in the strife must be vigilant, 
active and brave. 

Without courage and tenacity in the 
pursuit of an object, depart all the incen- 



120 CULLINGS FROM CARMEL; 

tives to manly effort, and the prize eludes 
the grasp and is lost. 

The trembling deer brought to bay by 
the hounds is easily taken; but man has 
capacity to break through the toils of 
fate and release himself. 

Nerve and self-reliance will extricate 
a person from the most trying and haz- 
ardous predicament, where the lack of 
these qualities would involve him in 
death and ruin. 

Courage, fellow-workers, courage is 
w^hat you most need; for to be frighten- 
ed in the face of difficulty is to be al- 
ready subdued by it. 



GOOD WORKS AND WORDS. 

A praise-worthy action performed or 
good words fitly spoken, wath the con- 
sciousness that they are of themselves 



PARABLES AND ALLEGORIES. 121 

good^ ever receive their reward in an 
approving conscience, if not at the hands 
and from the testimony of men. 

Good deeds and words never lose their 
potency, if prompted by disinterested 
motives. " Like bread cast upon the 
waters/' they return to bless their au- 
thor, even after many days. 

Few men act from motives entirely 
unselfish and disinterested ; and the 
rarer the action the more does the actor 
deserve to be honored. He is of those 
who '• do good by stealth, and blush to 
find it fame." 

The teacher who is devoted to his mis- 
sion, content to labor without applause; 
the philanthropist, who is liberal with 
his means, dispensing charity, relieving, 
unknown to the world, the distresses of 
his fellow-men, they who succor the 
poor and lighten the burdens of the 
heavy ladened — all labor with the calm 



122 CULLINGS FROM CARMEL : 

approval of their own souls, content if 
their works be worthy of the smiles of 
Heaven. 

Their s is toil for which money is no 
reward — no compensation. 

These are the disinterested workers of 
the world, to whom the world owes so 
muchj and yet pays so little. 

They labor on; spend and are spent 
in the cause of human progress. They 
die and are forgotten, perhaps, by the 
mass of men ; but those whom they have 
benefited, will hold them in greatful re- 
membrance, and the Lord will reward 
his patient servants at the last day. 



PARABLES AND ALLEGORIES. 123 

BELONGS THE WORLD TO 
ME ALONE? 

No, we cannot say we have a claim 
upon the world exceeding the claim of 
our fellow-men. 

Mankind enjoy the world in partner- 
ship, and so it has been decreed by the 
Almighty Framer of the Universe. 

Great warriors, like Alexander and 
Caesar, claimed in their time the world 
as their dominion, and set forth with 
armies to conquer and subdue the na- 
tions of the earth ; but the Lord frown- 
ed upon them, and brought them to 
naught ; for He alone reigneth in hea\'- 
en and ruleth on earth. 

The powerful cannot say unto the 
weaker, '- 1 am greater than thou;'^ 
nor the rich man unto he that is poor, 
'^ I am greater than thou ;" nor he that 
is of one sect unto him that is of an-^ 



124 CULLINGS FKOM CARMEL; 

other^ ^'1 am greater than thou." For 
the earth and the fulness thereof 
is for the enjoyment of each anl c very- 
one of God's creatures. 

Intelligence and education enlarges our 
capacity for the appreciation and en- 
joyment of the bounties of heaven^ but 
the fear of the Lord causes us to walk 
with humility among men. 

We should remember that each of us is 
but a human atom in the world ; that 
there are billions of other atoms such as 
we are^ each one occupying a share of 
space, drawing existence from the sun 
and air, having equal rights and privi- 
leges. 

The earth belongeth not to me alonOj, 
but to every creature under heaven. 



FINIS. 



The following, by the Author of this Volume, have 
been published. 

1. Songs, Hebrew and Grerman. dedicated to the 

late Priiice Vrilhelni Florentine, Von Salni- 
Salm (father of the Prince who fought in the 
U. S. army.) 1831. 

2. Sermon^ at the inauguration of the Synagogue 

at Ehoden, 1834. 

3. Ne"w Year, a present for children, favorably 

criticised by Dr. J. M. Joest. Annalen, Frank- 
fort on-the-:\Iain, 1841. 

4. Geography of Palestine, 1842. 

5. Reform, dedicated to Dr. Gabriel Riesser. 

Vice-President of the National Congress, at 
Frankfort- on the- Main. 1849. 

6. Programme of his Institute. 1845. 

7. A Present for the Educated Public, 1853. 

8. CuUings from Carmel, 1871. 

9. Elementary Book of the French Lan- 

guage, first American Edition : ready for the 
Press. 



^% 







